Russia: the polar grab

A Russian expedition has just reopened the quiet struggle over the Arctic by planting its flag deep beneath the North Pole. Global warming will make new economic activities possible in the Arctic, and the US, Canada, Denmark and Norway are also competing to prove their rights to energy and mineral resources.

by Dominique Kopp

Two Russian mini-submarines, Mir 1 and Mir 2, resurfaced on 2 August after planting a rust-proof titanium flag on the seabed 4,261m beneath the North Pole. That was a world first. On board Mir 1 Artur Chilingarov, vice-president of the Russian Duma and polar explorer, described what he saw: (...)